The Hone device attaches to your key or keychain and can be activated through a free iPad or iPhone app, activating a beep, letting you know where your key can be found. The device works within a 160 foot (49 m.) range.
A look at the size comparison of the Hone
This device works with iPhone 4S and 5. It also works with iPad 3, 4, and iPad mini. (Older iOS devices lack Bluetooth 4.0 chipsets with Bluetooth low energy support that is needed to operate the device at the design range.) It weighs about half an ounce (14 g) and lasts six months for the average user on a single CR2032 watch battery.
Hone and battery type
Users who share keys may pair a second Hone to the app as well as well as those who have Hones for other objects. They will find that the main screen is replaced by a list view that shows multiple Hones.
To connect the Hone and the app, open the app, then pull the protective plastic strap from the Hone, place the Hone device next to your iPhone or iPad, and when the app recognizes your Hone, choose a name. Setup is then complete.
To use it, open the app and tap the Find button. Within seconds, the Hone app will locate the Hone device and it will begin to chirp repeatedly. The simulated LEDs in the app will indicate how close you're getting. If you turn on the assistive access option (for the hearing impaired), it can also vibrate your phone as you get closer. While the app's virtual LEDs suggested the distance, you'll probably want to hear the hone chirp in the final stage of finding. That means if your keys are in the car, in the garage and you are inside the house, you may not be able to hear the chirp. Identifying some likely, candidate locations is probably a helpful strategy before pressing the Find button.
There is a built-in help screen that covers topics such as changing the battery, pairing to another mobile device, and renaming. When you locate your keys, tap the Find key again to turn it off.
App window. LED's indicate range.
Using The Product
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like to misplace my keys. Aside from the obvious reason of not being able to leave when I need to, there is the issue of replacing lost keys. A replacement key for my car must be ordered from France and costs around US$400. In spite of that fact, I don’t always put them where they belong because of all the reasons you probably don’t put yours where they belong either.
Then there was the time the cat decided to play with my keys, and they were under the bed. And then there was the time I left them in the car in the garage because they fell out of my hands and fell between the bucket seats because I had my hands full of a grandchild.
This product is so easy to use that it makes no sense not to use it. More to the point, it works. I tried a similar product a few months ago, and I could never make it work as it was supposed to. There were too many details. With this one, I open my app, click the Find button, and start listening for the beep. It’s not a very loud beep, but when you get close enough you can finally hear it. When I tested to see if it would work through a wall and door, out to the garage, it worked perfectly although I had to enter the garage to hear it.
Do I Recommend It?
I do. I’m sure there are readers who absolutely never mislay their keys (or spill gravy or their ties, or get their shoes muddy), but for the rest of us mere mortals, this is a good thing.